Author: Stephen Fenech

The Electronics Entertainment Expo – known as E3 – has kicked off in Los Angeles and will showcase the blockbuster games heading our way in the months ahead. E3 is the biggest gathering of the computer gaming industry which rivals the box office in terms of annual revenue. Microsoft held its Xbox press conference outlining the future of the console and the line-up of exclusive games. This was followed by the Sony PlayStation event that also provided an exciting update about what we can expect to be playing on the console. Microsoft announced it will make the Xbox One console…

Tune in and stay updated and educated about the latest tech news and product reviews in Episode 152 in the top-rating Tech Guide podcast, hosted by editor Stephen Fenech. On this week’s show, Spotify prepares to do battle with Apple Music and reveals some strong growth stats, eBay releases its Economics of Electronics trend report and Woolworths enters the pre-paid mobile plan market. In the Tech Guide reviews we check out the Lifeproof Fre Power case, the Plantronics BackBeat Fit headphones, the Dyson V6 Absolute cordless vacuum and the Sony 4K Action Cam. In the Tech Guide Help Desk, we…

If you want to combine retro good looks and all the modern features of a connected digital radio then you need to take a look at the Bush Heritage II Connect. Bush’s latest device has a classic design and comes with a walnut or cream finish along with an old-style grille and knobs on the front. But here’s where old meets modern – the Bush Heritage II Connect also has a display, navigation buttons and wireless connectivity. Users can tune into more than 16,000 digital and internet stations. The DAB+ digital radio stations are crisp and clear and provide live…

Lifeproof is well known for producing waterproof cases for smartphones but the company has added another feature to its latest case for the iPhone 6 – a built-in battery to recharge the device on the go. The Fre Power offers all the protection you’ve come to expect from a Lifeproof case. But the case has now added a battery so users can be out enjoying the great outdoors without the worry of damaging their iPhone and miles away from a power point knowing they have enough power to recharge their device on the move. Fre Power is rated at IP68…

If you’re after a pair of headphones to wear while you’re exercising it has to be wireless and built to handle your workout – just like the new Plantronics BackBeat Fit headphones. The BackBeat Fit headphones connect to your mobile device via Bluetooth and have an over the ear design with each earpiece connected by a single band. It is made of a plastic material that is covered with a P2i nano coating during the manufacturing process. This gives it invisible liquid repellent properties so it can easily handle the rain and the sweat. And without a cable between the…

Dyson has taken its latest technology and innovation and put into the new V6 Absolute cordless vacuum to give it the features and power of other corded machines. Dyson, a company that has a similar design, engineering and ease-of-use philosophy as Apple, has made a breakthrough with the V6 Absolute to create something many thought impossible. The words small, lightweight, powerful and cordless have never been used in the same sentence to accurately describe a vacuum cleaner but the V6 Absolute can tick all of those boxes. In terms of suction, that’s the biggest feature you want from a vacuum,…

eBay Australia has released a new report that shows more than 50 per cent of people who visited the online shopping site made a purchase in the technology category. The Economics of Electronics trend report from eBay reflects the fact that technology is playing a major part in our lives with even more connected devices in our homes and wearables and the internet of things becoming even more popular. These findings were shared with tech analyst firm Telsyte who identified some remarkable trends. AUSTRALIANS ARE TECH SAVVY Australia is second only to Singapore in terms of smartphone penetration and ahead…

Sony knows a thing or two about making a good camera and they’ve taken that expertise and packed it onto the 4K Action Cam that can capture what ever you’re doing anywhere. The Sony FDR-X1000V can capture true 4K video with a resolution of 3840 x 2160 and with a bit rate of up to 100Mbps. It can also, of course, capture full high definition with a number of different shooting modes including motion recorded at either 240p in high definition or 120p slow motion in full high definition. This point-of-view camera will draw a number of comparisons to the…

Woolworths might be the fresh food people but now it is also a mobile phone operator and will be providing two plans that offer value and discounts for loyal customers. Available from June 15, the Woolworths Connect plans are designed to offer generous data allowances and call value on the trusted and reliable Telstra 3G network. There are two pre-paid plans priced at $30 and $45. Everyday Rewards members will receive a 10 per cent discount on the plans – bringing them down to $27 and $40.50. Each pre-paid plan has unlimited standard SMS and unlimited calls between Woolworths Connect…

Episode 212 of the top-rating Two Blokes Talking Tech podcast, with Tech Guide editor Stephen Fenech and EFTM’s Trevor Long, share their thoughts on the Apple announcements from the Worldwide Developers Conference. The blokes discuss iOS 9 for the iPhone and iMac, OS X El Capitan for the Mac, watchOS 2 for Apple Watch and the new Apple Music streaming service. Also on the show, Samsung’s new Galaxy Tab S tablets, the Casio Red Bull Edifice watch and the Telstra home phone that can protect you from scammers. In the minute reviews, we take a look at the Sony 4K…

Streaming music service Spotify has announced its paying subscriber base has doubled in a year just days after the introduction of Apple Music which many saw as a major threat for the company. But Spotify has shown it has gone from strength to strength in the past 12 months which saw the paying customer base grow from 10 million to an impressive 20 million users. And the number of active users has also grown from 40 million to 75 million in the same period. With more listeners flocking to the streaming music service, it also means Spotify has increased the…

With the number of telephones scams on the rise, Telstra has released a new Call Guardian home phone to protect its customers after receiving more than 4000 reports of scams this year. NSW customers (1734) made the most reports about these deceptions followed by Victoria (758), Queensland (737), Western Australia (371), South Australia (217), Tasmania (48), the Northern Territory (27) and the ACT (21). These scams include people impersonating Telstra representatives, asking for access to a customer’s home computer to fix a non-existent problem or fake virus and telling people their home line will be disconnected if they don’t pay…

From the moment the Apple Music streaming service was announced at the Worldwide Developers Conference, there have been a lot of people writing obituaries for existing music services like Spotify, Rdio and Deezer among others. Ever since Apple purchased Beats in 2014 this announcement has been like tracking a comet on its way to earth – we knew months ago it was coming. But, to quote Mark Twain who’d heard his obituary had been published in the New York Journal, reports of Spotify’s death have been greatly exaggerated. Whenever Apple enters a new market it’s like the earthquake that triggers…

Episode 151 of the top-rating Tech Guide podcast, hosted by editor Stephen Fenech, wraps up all of the announcements from Apple’s Worldwide Developers Conference in San Francisco. On this week’s show, we take a look at the new Apple Music service, the latest iOS 9 for iPhone and iPad, OS X El Capitan for the Mac and the new watch OS 2 for Apple Watch. Also on the program, Apple issues a safety recall for the Beats Pill XL speaker and Samsung releases new range of Galaxy Tab A tablets. In the Tech Guide reviews, we run our eye over…

The Apple Watch has been on the market for less than two months but Apple is already talking about watchOS 2 and revealed some of the new features at the Worldwide Developers Conference. Held in San Francisco, WWDC is a chance for developers to find out about the latest Apple operating systems for the iPhone, iPad and Mac computers. And now the Apple Watch is the latest device developers will be supporting. The original Apple Watch operating was a great starting point but the new watchOS 2 will unleash a new wave of features and capabilities. This new software will…

Apple’s new OS X El Capitan operating system, introduced at the Worldwide Developers Conference in San Francisco, will make the Mac faster and even easier to use thanks to a range of new features. The focus on the follow-up to OS X Yosemite is to provide an enhanced user experience with new abilities as well as improved performance. Users will see more fluid graphics along with faster opening of documents, PDFs, emails and images. OS X El Capitan continues the recent tradition of Apple naming its OS X versions after Californian landmarks including surf break Mavericks and Yosemite National Park.…

Apple’s has provided the first glimpse at the upcoming iOS 9 for iPhone and iPad at the Worldwide Developers Conference in San Francisco which offers all new enhancements and improved performance. iOS 9 will provide new ways to access your content, be more organised, work more efficiently, see what’s going on around you and even extend your battery life. The new iOS 9 update will be released round September and it will work on iPhone 4S and later, iPad Mini, iPad 2 and later and the iPod Touch fifth generation. Here’s a look at the new features of iOS 9…

Apple has introduced Apple Music at the Worldwide Developers Conference in San Francisco which is a streaming service, a live radio station and an all-new way to connect with your favourite artists. The service will be available from June 30 in more than 100 countries – including Australia – with music fans able to enjoy a free three-month trial before signing up. Pricing in the US will be $US9.99 a month and $US14.99 for a family account for up to six users. In Australia pricing will be announced closer to launch but we’re expecting Apple Music to cost $11.99 and…

A Tech Guide reader has discovered the hard way exactly how much it costs to repair a broken Apple Watch after accidentally breaking his screen while playing tennis. The Sydney man accidently clipped his 42mm Apple Watch Sport with his racquet while playing tennis. The screen shattered but the Apple Watch was still working perfectly well but it was just hard to read the display through the broken screen. Ironically the man was playing sport with his Apple Watch Sport when it was broken. But on top of the disappointment of having a broken Apple Watch, the man was alarmed…

Bose has released the next generation of its popular go-anywhere SoundLink Mini Bluetooth Speaker with a number of enhancements to sit alongside the excellent audio quality. The SoundLink Mini Bluetooth Speaker II has the same compact shape and design as the original and is available in two colours – Carbon and Pearl. It is just 18cm wide, 5.1cm high and 5.9cm deep with a weight of 700g. But despite its small size it can still produce a great sound with surprisingly solid bass and impressive clarity. The new Bose SoundLink Mini Bluetooth Speaker II now has a built-in speakerphone option…